Related papers: Analysis of Asteroid (216) Kleopatra using dynamic…
We conducted a polarimetric observation of the fast-rotating near-Earth asteroid (1566) Icarus at large phase (Sun-asteroid-observer's) angles $\alpha$= 57 deg--141deg around the 2015 summer solstice. We found that the maximum values of the…
We fit 54,296 sparsely-sampled asteroid lightcurves in the Palomar Transient Factory to a combined rotation plus phase-function model. Each lightcurve consists of 20+ observations acquired in a single opposition. Using 805 asteroids in our…
In general, small bodies of the solar system, e.g., asteroids and comets, have a very irregular shape. This feature affects significantly the gravitational potential around these irregular bodies, which hinders dynamical studies. The…
We develop a fourth-order numerical integrator to simulate the coupled spin and orbital motions of two rigid bodies having arbitrary mass distributions under the influence of their mutual gravitational potential. We simulate the dynamics of…
Polarimetry has the capacity to provide a unique probe of the surface properties of asteroids. Trends in polarization behavior as a function of wavelength trace asteroid regolith mineral properties that are difficult to probe without…
The NASA Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission is a planetary defense-driven test of a kinetic impactor on Dimorphos, the satellite of the binary asteroid 65803 Didymos. DART will intercept Dimorphos at a relative speed of…
Potentially hazardous asteroid (185851) 2000 DP107 was the first binary near-Earth asteroid to be imaged. Radar observations in 2000 provided images at 75 m resolution that revealed the shape, orbit, and spin-up formation mechanism of the…
The near-Earth asteroid (99942) Apophis is a potentially hazardous asteroid. We obtained far-infrared observations of this asteroid with the Herschel Space Observatory's PACS instrument at 70, 100, and 160 micron. These were taken at two…
We present a numerical investigation of the dynamics of one falling oblate ellipsoid particle in a viscous fluid, in three dimensions, using a constrained-force technique \cite{Kai}, \cite{Kaih} and \cite{Esa}. We study the dynamical…
Near-Earth asteroids (NEAs) that may evolve into impactors deserve detailed threat assessment studies. Early physical characterization of a would-be impactor may help in optimizing impact mitigation plans. We first detected NEA…
The locations of the fully despun, double synchronous end states of tidal evolution are derived for spherical components. With the exception of nearly equal-mass binaries, binary asteroid systems are in the midst of lengthy tidal…
Irregular structure in planetary rings is often attributed to the intrinsic instabilities of a homogeneous state undergoing Keplerian shear. Previously these have been analysed with simple hydrodynamic models. We instead employ a kinetic…
With the successful impact of the NASA DART spacecraft in the Didymos-Dimorphos binary asteroid system, we provide an initial analysis of the post-impact perturbed binary asteroid dynamics. To compare our simulation results with…
We are interested in stable periodic orbits for spacecrafts in the gravitational field of minor celestial bodies. The stable periodic orbits around minor celestial bodies are useful not only for the mission design of the deep space…
We report on Spitzer Space Telescope IRAC observations of near-Earth object (NEO) 2009 BD that were carried out in support of the NASA Asteroid Robotic Retrieval Mission (ARRM) concept. We did not detect 2009 BD in 25 hrs of integration at…
We have carried out simulations to predict the performance of a new space-based telescopic survey operating at thermal infrared wavelengths that seeks to discover and characterize a large fraction of the potentially hazardous near-Earth…
In order to obtain the substantial information about the surface physics and thermal property of the target asteroid (162173) 1999 JU3, which will be visited by Hayabusa 2 in a sample return mission, with the Advanced Thermal Physical Model…
Strange-looking dust cloud around asteroid (596) Scheila was discovered on 2010 December 11.44-11.47. Unlike normal cometary tails, it consisted of three tails and faded within two months. We constructed a model to reproduce the morphology…
Photometric observations of asteroids show that some of them are in non-principal axis rotation state (free precession), called tumbling. Collisions between asteroids have been proposed as a possible asteroid rotation excitation mechanism.…
The dynamics of active smectic liquid crystals confined on a spherical surface is explored through an active phase field crystal model. Starting from an initially randomly perturbed isotropic phase, several types of topological defects are…